Did You Know? Verizon Wireless’ Network Is Keeping Los Angeles County Firefighters And Residents Connected

BASKING RIDGE, NJ, and LOS ANGELES — Firefighters in the field and evacuees at shelters in Los Angeles County are relying on the Verizon Wireless network to stay connected as wildfires engulf thousands of acres in the Angeles National Forest and San Jacinto Mountains.

Verizon Wireless donated nearly 100 Mobile Broadband cards for Internet access and more than 160 mobile phones with airtime for firefighters battling wildfires and for evacuees contacting loved ones and getting updates on their homes and communities.

In addition, Verizon Wireless network technicians have added capacity to area cell sites to keep customers connected as mandatory evacuations of residential and commercial neighborhoods generate spikes in call volume. Backup batteries and generators have powered several sites during intermittent commercial power interruptions caused by the fires.

Visit http://news.vzw.com/Emergency/Overview.html for the latest news on Verizon Wireless’ support in Southern California. View video and testimonials from firefighters at the Station wildfire command center at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.